Article by PNJ reporter D.C. Reeves
No matter how much promise his running back displayed, Escambia High coach Jimmy Nichols stayed on Trent Richardson's case all preseason long. "I've just been practicing real hard," Richardson said. "Even when I do good, (Nichols) gets on to me. So I had to go hard out there." Going hard was an understatement Thursday night. The junior who wasn't assured a starting role two weeks ago smashed the Tate High defense with 404 rushing yards, pulling his Gators past the Aggies 30-8 at Emmitt Smith Field. Richardson needed just 30 carries to compile the yardage a 13.5 yard average including 11 carries of 10 yards or more. The total is believed to be the second highest total in Bay Area history behind PHS's Demontray Carter, who had 460 yards on 12 carries in 1996. "He has great potential, he really does," Nichols said. "He's got to learn a lot of things. He has to be a team player for one, but he's coming, he's improved every time we go out and play. I'm excited for him. Good things need to happen to him." His improvement showed quickly. Richardson carried the ball six times on the first drive of the game including five consecutive plays for 81 yards and a 17-yard touchdown. He followed that with an 80-yard touchdown in the second quarter, giving him 196 yards in the first 19 minutes. By halftime, Richardson accounted for 242 of Escambia's 287 yards. The Escambia defense followed Richardson's lead, holding Tate to just 33 yards from scrimmage in the first half. Once the Aggies got moving on a 16-play drive to open the third quarter, the Gators held on fourth down, ending Tate's 79-yard possession that ended at the Escambia 5. The drive ate up 9:23. Trailing 16-0 midway through the fourth, (0-1) Tate quarterback Edwin Richburg capped a 9-play drive with a seven yard touchdown run. The two-point conversion was successful, making it 16-8 with 7:27 to go. That was enough motivation for Richardson. He got the handoff on Escambia's next play, rushed right, reversed field and outran the Tate secondary for another 80-yard score. He wasn't done yet. Richardson bowed out with a 34-yard yard touchdown run with under a minute left.
"I couldn't do it without my (offensive) line," Richardson said. "The holes were there tonight. The line broke a hole for me and I had to get through it." The monumental Thursday was Nichols' first game as a head coach since coaching the Gators in 1992. Richardson's Emmitt-like performance may have aided the smooth transition.
"(Thursday's game) just felt like I've been here the whole time. It wasn't any different for me," Nichols said. "I tell you what, there was some flash moments there." They were just flashes, however. The huge individual game wasn't enough to get the old-school disciplinarian too excited. "I was very pleased, don't get me wrong," said Nichols, whose Gators take on Milton next week. "But I surely wasn't satisfied."